Pacific City STR Seasonality: August Peaks, February Lags

Jacob Mishalanie
Aug 21
7 min read

Updated: 18 hours ago

Empty Nestucca River estuary near Pacific City, no people

Pacific City's short-term rental calendar has a clear shape: August is the busiest month, June and July are the next-strongest, and February is the slowest. That pattern comes from AirROI's trailing twelve-month extract covering August 2025 through July 2026, based on 286 active listings in this Oregon coast market. Oceanside, the neighboring beach town up Highway 101, runs its own calendar with its own numbers, and the two markets shouldn't be priced or projected off the same file.

On that AirROI extract, a typical Pacific City listing earned about $40,828 over the year, with an average nightly rate of $363 and occupancy of 35.4 percent. Revenue per available night (RevPAR) came in at $141. Revenue was down 4.7 percent year over year, while active supply held essentially flat at 0.0 percent growth, a sign the softening came from demand rather than from a wave of new listings competing for the same guests.

Guests book Pacific City for coastal weekends more than long escapes: most come from Portland, with Bend the next-largest source market. The typical stay is 3.4 nights, and guests book about 60 days ahead of arrival. Because Pacific City is unincorporated, hosts operate under Tillamook County's short-term rental rules rather than a city ordinance, which the closing section below covers in more detail.

August Is the Busiest Month for Pacific City Rentals

August carries the year. It's the single busiest month in the AirROI extract, driven by peak coastal tourist season, the Oregon coast's most reliable summer weather window, and the highest concentration of family trips before school starts back up. Hosts should price August like the ceiling of the calendar, not like an average month, since this is the stretch where a well-positioned listing pulls its biggest share of that $40,828 average annual revenue.

That $40,828 figure, the $363 average nightly rate, and the 35.4 percent occupancy rate are all annual numbers, and August's contribution to them is disproportionate. If you're building a pricing calendar, treat August as the month where demand can absorb your highest rates of the year, then taper down through the shoulder months that follow.

June and July Round Out the Strong Season

June and July are the second- and third-strongest months, giving Pacific City a three-month summer run of August, June, and July that anchors the year's revenue. Even so, those three strong months still sit inside an annual occupancy average of just 35.4 percent, proof that a good summer doesn't automatically make for a strong year-round calendar in this market.

The takeaway for hosts is to treat June through August as one pricing block rather than three separate guesses. Guests are already booking an average of 60 days out and staying 3.4 nights, so calendars should be open and priced for the full summer stretch well before Memorial Day.

February Is the Slowest Month, January the Weakest for Occupancy

February is the slowest month for revenue in Pacific City, but January is actually the weakest for occupancy, two related but different signals worth tracking separately. A host who lumps the whole winter into one guess will misprice both months.

Winter isn't a dead calendar, though. The Oregon coast draws a steady run of storm-watchers and off-season remote workers looking for a quiet stretch on the water, and Pacific City's dory fleet and Cape Kiwanda headland are visible and walkable in any season. Price January and February against their own occupancy data rather than against August's rate; discounting off the peak rate instead of pricing to what winter guests will actually pay is a common and avoidable mistake.

Don't Borrow Oceanside's Peak or Its Rate

Oceanside sits a short drive north of Pacific City, and it's tempting to treat the two towns as one market. They aren't. Oceanside's AirROI extract shows about $34,813 in average annual revenue across 97 listings, a different sample size, a different rate structure, and its own peak timing that doesn't necessarily line up with Pacific City's August-June-July run.

Keep the two files separate: $40,828 across 286 Pacific City listings for the August 2025 through July 2026 year is this market's number. Oceanside's $34,813 across 97 listings belongs to Oceanside. Don't average them, and don't apply one town's occupancy curve to the other's calendar.

The 35.4 Percent Occupancy Rate Is an Annual Average, Not a Weekly Snapshot

Occupancy of 35.4 percent is a trailing twelve-month average across all 286 tracked listings, not a number that applies evenly to any single week. A packed Cape Kiwanda weekend in August and an empty week in February both feed into that same annual figure.

RevPAR of $141 and a 4.7 percent year-over-year revenue decline, paired with flat active supply, point toward softer demand rather than a market getting flooded with new competitors. That distinction matters for a host deciding whether to adjust rates or worry about oversupply: the data here points to pricing strategy and demand generation as the more useful lever, not supply anxiety.

Cape Kiwanda Traffic Signals Demand, Not Booked Nights

Cape Kiwanda's sandstone headland, dune, and dory-launch beach pull a steady stream of day-trip visitors year-round, and that foot traffic is genuine demand for the area. But visitor counts and a busy parking lot are not the same thing as a booked night on your calendar; plenty of that traffic is day visitors, not overnight guests.

Use Cape Kiwanda in your listing photography and marketing, since it's a real, walkable draw guests recognize, but don't assume a busy beach day converts into occupancy without a marketing and pricing push behind it. If your listing promises a specific hike, tide-pool walk, or seasonal activity, confirm current hours and access directly rather than relying on last year's information.

A 60-Day Booking Window and a 30-Night Minimum Aren't Occupancy Either

Two more numbers get confused with occupancy in this market. First, guests book an average of 60 days ahead of a 3.4-night stay, a booking-window habit, not a measure of how full your calendar actually runs. Second, 169 of the 286 tracked listings (59.1 percent) run a 30-night minimum stay, which is a stay-length policy, not a performance metric.

Together, those two facts describe how guests behave and how a majority of the competitive set is configured, useful context for setting your own minimum-stay rules, but neither one tells you what occupancy or revenue to expect. For that, go back to the annual numbers: 35.4 percent occupancy, $141 RevPAR, and a $363 average nightly rate.

Price Each Month on Its Own Data

Put it together and the pricing rule is simple: price August, June, and July like the peak they are, price January and February against their own lower occupancy rather than discounting off August's rate, and keep Oceanside's $34,813-across-97-listings file completely separate from Pacific City's $40,828-across-286-listings file.

Before you list, confirm your regulatory footing too. Pacific City is unincorporated, so short-term rentals fall under Tillamook County rather than a city hall. Tillamook County Community Development is located at 1510-B Third Street, Tillamook, OR 97141, and a county short-term rental operator license applies. A specific 2026 license fee wasn't confirmed as a single published number as of this writing, so check the county's current fee schedule directly before you set a launch date rather than assuming last year's number still applies.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which month is busiest for Pacific City rentals?

August. On the AirROI extract covering August 2025 through July 2026, Pacific City's 286 active listings averaged about $40,828 in annual revenue, a $363 average nightly rate, 35.4 percent occupancy, and $141 RevPAR, with August standing out as the single strongest month within that year.

What are the second- and third-strongest months?

June and July. Together with August they form Pacific City's three strongest months, but even that summer run sits inside an annual occupancy average of just 35.4 percent, so a strong summer alone doesn't guarantee a strong year. Price all three months as one seasonal block rather than three separate guesses.

Is the slowest month for revenue the same as the weakest month for occupancy?

No. February is the slowest month for revenue in Pacific City, while January posts the weakest occupancy. They are related but separate signals, and pricing winter correctly means tracking both rather than treating the whole off-season as one guess.

Does Oceanside share Pacific City's peak season?

Not necessarily, and the two markets shouldn't be priced off the same data. Oceanside's AirROI extract shows about $34,813 in average annual revenue across 97 listings, a smaller sample with its own rate structure and timing, separate from Pacific City's $40,828 across 286 listings.

What does the 35.4 percent occupancy figure actually mean?

It's a trailing twelve-month average across all 286 tracked Pacific City listings, not a weekly or seasonal number. RevPAR was $141, and revenue fell 4.7 percent year over year even though active supply stayed essentially flat, pointing to softer demand rather than new listings crowding the market.

Does heavy visitor traffic at Cape Kiwanda mean the calendar is full?

No. Cape Kiwanda's headland, dune, and dory-launch beach draw steady day-trip visitor traffic, which is real demand for the area but not the same as a booked overnight stay. Use it in marketing, but price from occupancy data rather than foot-traffic estimates.

What do the 60-day booking window and 30-night minimum tell a host?

They describe guest and market behavior, not how full a calendar is. Guests book an average of 60 days ahead for a 3.4-night stay, and 169 of the 286 tracked listings, 59.1 percent, run a 30-night minimum, which is a stay-length rule, not a performance number. For actual demand, use the 35.4 percent occupancy and $141 RevPAR figures instead.

What's the single rule for pricing a Pacific City rental through the year?

Price each month against its own data: August, June, and July like the peak they are, January and February against their own lower occupancy rather than a discount off August's rate, and Oceanside's numbers kept entirely separate. Before you launch, confirm current short-term rental licensing with Tillamook County Community Development, since Pacific City is unincorporated and falls under county rules.

Work with Crest & Cove Creative

Pacific City's marketing often treats every month like August, but the calendar itself proves June, July, and February each need a different pitch to guests.

We help hosts rebuild the listing and pricing calendar around Pacific City's real seasonal curve, not a generic coastal template. Send your live listing and we'll flag where the copy still assumes peak-season demand.

Reach out at crestcove.co or (256) 998-7502.